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The recent announcement that the Archdiocese of Philadelphia will close almost 50 schools throughout the Archdiocese is indeed a stinging wound that hurts everyone that has had the benefit of Catholic education. I admit, the proposed closing of Saint Gabriel School distresses me because my very roots of my Catholic beliefs were instilled there by the Sisters Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, and the generations of priests that FAITHFULLY served thousands of faithful Catholics from the... Read Full Story

Happy Birthday to the United States Marine Corps, founded this day in 1775 at Tun Tavern in Philadelphia. U.S. Marines have been part of every military engagement in which the United States has been involved. Happy Birthday to all Marines, especially those that have paid the ultimate sacrifice for American freedom and democracy. Happy Birthday to past, present and future Marines is somewhat redundant....after all one is ALWAYS a Marine. Thank you Leathernecks, and SEMPER FI! Below is a sketch... Read Full Story

Aladar Korosfoi-Kriesch All Souls' Day --1910 Oil on canvas, 51,5 x 72,5 cm Hungarian National Gallery, Budapest (It is a Hungarian tradition to go to cemeteries to honor the dead)          Today we remember the faithful souls that have not attained their final eschatological state with God. Countless, nameless souls that need our prayers and spiritual remembrances. This commemoration of All Souls reminds us of our temporality and our own mortality. At the same time it also causes us as... Read Full Story

! William Bougereau Dante and Virgil in Hell 1850 The newly revised list of the seven deadly sins is indeed an announcement that makes everyone step back and consider our moral actions in terms of a much larger global perspective. The original deadly sins, embodied in the Divine Comedy, (lust, gluttony, greed, sloth, wrath, envy & pride) have received a long overdue modification. This modification updates the sins with a global perspective in mind as the world becomes increasingly more... Read Full Story

October is alsways a memorable month, as is May when I recall the parochial school days at Saint Gabriel Parish School. It was Mary's Month, and the school was festooned to reflect Marian Blue in all of the classroooms and hallways. The most favorite recollection is the magnificent decorations that decorared the Mary Altar within the Church itself. Draperies of blue velvet and gold silk, covered the great painting of the Annunciation of Saint Gabriel and focused all of the atention on the... Read Full Story

Today, October 13 is the 94th anniversary of the apparition of the Blessed Virgin Mary to the children at Fatima. Since the monumental event, the Church has celebrated Mary's providence and admonitions that direct the world to pray for peace and conversion of all peoples. Pope Pius XII, was frequently called, "the Pope of Fatima," because of his particular devotion to Her. In fulfillment of Mary's request, Pius XII consecrated the world to Mary, and in particular invoked her request for the... Read Full Story

Forty nine years ago, the Catholic Church entered into the age of “aggiornamento”, an opening up to the evolving modern world of the 1960’s. To place the state if the world in perspective, John F.Kennedy was President of the United States and Blessed John XXIII was Pope and the Catholic world used Latin as the primary language for liturgical celebrations and global communications. Pope John XXIII convened the Council in an earnest attempt to bring the Catholic Church into the modern age of... Read Full Story

Rituals are part of the Irish Catholic lifestyle. Perhaps the most dreaded ritual is when a loved relative dies and all of the Celtic nuances of mourning are set into motion. Namely, the entire family is notified of the passing of either a grandparent, aunt, uncle or some other relative. Then the wake is planned, the funeral and finally internment at the Catholic cemetery. Usually this ritual remains unchanged and has seemingly remained firm, since the first Irish settlers set foot into the... Read Full Story

Father’s Day, the annual event that creates a rush of activity in the Hallmark stores nationwide, and multiple traffic jams throughout the parking lots of shopping malls and raises revenues at Macy’s stores is a really remarkable day. As a son, I never quite understood the real significance of the day…because my father was and is always there to help me in innumerable ways that I cannot adequately explain. Throughout my parochial school years, my father never generated any academic stress on... Read Full Story

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